


Easter Invitation

by allysonandrews1982 (FonzFan82)



Series: Family Ties [3]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Easter, Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-22
Updated: 2016-03-27
Packaged: 2018-05-28 09:24:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6323857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FonzFan82/pseuds/allysonandrews1982
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Easter is on the way and Gloria invites her family and a friend of hers, Deanna Bush to come. This year Cynthia and Gloria said they couldn't make it, even if it is short notice. How will the Easter holiday turn out?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Gloria Presley was having a conversation over the telephone. Today she was speaking with Cynthia, who is her oldest child.

“Cynthia, what do you think about coming home to Colton for Easter?”

This was the conversation she was talking with her daughter. Cynthia originally lives out in North Dakota, so they were trying to see if they could talk about her coming home. Gloria had four other children, but they are all grown up and living on their own.

“Mom, I do like the idea of coming out, but I have no tickets to fly. I’m not working this weekend, so I will what I can do.”

Gloria usually celebrates the Easter holiday with Cynthia, Catherine, John, Jessica, Travis, Jennifer and of course, Zachary. John and Zachary are still here in Colton, so getting together with them on holidays was easy to do. She’d already talked with John, but plans to talk with Zachary and Travis next.

“What’s all that counts, Cynthia. You could drive here, even if we’re so far away. It would save you time looking to call for reservations.”

“Let me think about it, Mom. If I don’t come you’ll understand.”

“I will understand, Cynthia.”

“Have you talked with everyone else?”

“You and John are the only ones I’ve spoken to, but I will talk with your other siblings.”

“Okay. I don’t feel like stressing to find the right clothes to pack, so I think I’ll stay here.”

“That’s fine, Cynthia. It’s nice speaking with you again.”

“Same to you.”

An idea popped into Cynthia’s head just then.

“Mom, I just thought of something.”

“What’s that?”

“Have you spoken with Deanna recently?”

“No, I haven’t. She the idea you came up with?”

“Yes. Maybe you could invite her over for Easter, even if it means short notice.”

“I will call her and see what she says. I like that suggestion.”

“When was the last time you talked with her?”

“When you, Catherine and I saw her in Edgewater Terrace.”

“Sounds like a long time ago. Maybe this invite sounds like a good chance to catch up.”

“I will ask her that. Why don’t you come on short notice?”

“Easter is on Sunday, right?”

“Right. We would hate it if you can’t come.”

“I know, Mom. I’ll do my best. If we talked about this a long time ago, it would give me plenty of time to pack.”

“Sometimes short notice is always better than nothing,” Gloria replied.

“I have to agree with you, Mom. I have to go, but I will text you what my answer is. How does that sound?”

“That sounds like a good idea. I’ll call everyone else next.”

“Let me know what Deanna says.”

“I will do that.”

That’s when Cynthia disconnected. If Deanna was able to come here to South Carolina, it would give Deanna a chance to meet the rest of her family.

Deanna Bush is a good friend of Gloria’s. Even though both women are different ages, they do share a lot of what is going on with their lives. Deanna is forty – three while Gloria is sixty – eight. An idea came to mind. Why not invite Deanna’s folks to come? Gloria wanted to talk with Catherine next, and that’s what she did. She listened to the phone ring.

Catherine wasn’t home, so all Gloria could do was leave a message to call back. She hoped her daughter would return her call. Next on her list was her son, Travis. He still lived here in South Carolina, but was in about two or three towns away. Travis is the only child she’s had who has some disabilities. In some of those areas, he could take care of himself, and the rest he couldn’t.

“Hello?”

It was Jennifer, Travis’s wife.

“Hello, Jennifer.”

“Gloria, what a surprise to hear from you! How have you been?”

“I’m doing well, Jennifer. Is Travis around?”

“He is. Let me go find him and see if he’s in the mood to talk with you.”

Gloria was put on hold for a few minutes.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Hello, Travis. There is something I’d like to talk with you about.”

“Okay. What is it you have to say?”

Talking was one of Travis’s disabilities, so sometimes it can be hard to understand what he says, but sometimes talking doesn’t work.

“You do know that Easter is this Sunday,” Gloria began.

“I haven’t forgotten. Is this why you called?”

“Yes, Travis. I invited your sisters and brothers, but I’m going to talk with Zachary next.”

“I thought he already knows.”

“No, he doesn’t. He’s not with me at the moment. He’s working at the bank today.”

Zachary happens to be a bank teller. He hasn’t had the job very long, and he already loves it. Numbers are his strength.

“I think Jennifer and I can make it. Let me talk with her first and we’ll get back to you.”

“All right. I will understand if you don’t.”

“How about Cynthia? Did she say anything about this invitation being short notice?”

“All Cynthia said was she’ll need time to think about it. She probably wouldn’t want to drive all the way here from South Dakota.”

“That makes sense. I’ll call when Jennifer and I made a decision.”

One thing that Travis next asked about was Deanna, but like John and Zachary, he only knows who Deanna is but haven’t met yet.

Their phone conversation finally ended. The phone began to ring. While Gloria was still by the phone, she answered it. It indeed was Catherine.

“Hi, Mom. I just finished playing your message. What’s up?”

“Catherine, Easter is this week,” Gloria began.

“What about it?”

“I wanted to see if you could come out and be with us for Easter.”

“When I heard your message, it made me think Easter wasn’t the topic of this conversation.”

“Well, it is. I would like to invite you to come home and celebrate.”

“I love your idea, Mom. Does everyone else know?”

“Almost. Zachary comes home soon, so he will be able to know. Jessica, John, and the kids are coming. Cynthia and Travis might come, but it’s something to think about since it’s short notice.”

“Makes sense to me, but I don’t think I can make it this year.”

“Why not? You have other plans?”

“Bingo. I was invited to a neighbor’s house over the weekend, and I’d hate to turn her invitation down at the last minute.”

“That’s understandable. Maybe next time you can visit.”

“That works best for me. How is Zachary?”

“He’s doing well. He’s at the bank now.”

“Wednesday, huh? If I don’t speak with you again later this week, you will know I’ll be at my neighbor’s.”

Gloria didn’t say anything right away. Zachary is still living at home since he is still looking for a place of his own, and Gloria enjoyed his company since she’s a widow. Catherine also was the first to end the conversation. Next was the call to Edgewater Terrace. Deanna was home, so it gave Gloria the chance to start the conversation.

“Hello, Gloria!” 

Deanna sounded like she was in a good mood this morning. Gloria could tell Deanna sounded surprised to hear from her.

“I was thinking about you, Deanna. I’m only calling to invite you to something.”

“What’s the invitation?”

“How would you like to come to Colton and celebrate Easter? It would give you a chance to meet my sons.”

“I’d like to, but Mom and Dad want to have the day for family only. It’s always been like that since I was a child.”

“I was hoping you wouldn’t turn me down.”

Deanna could tell Gloria sounded disappointed.

“Sorry you’re disappointed Gloria, but maybe we can make up for it.”

Gloria liked the idea, and then agreed.

“Tell your mother and father hello.”

“I will. Thanks for inviting us. We will talk later. Mom and Dad are getting ready for supper.”

“Take care.”

“Same to you.”

Zachary came home an hour later. He drove up just in time. Gloria was starting to make supper.

“Hi, Mom. I hope you had a nice day.”

Zachary usually greeted her this way, and Gloria liked his greeting.

“It went well. Zachary, there’s something we need to talk about.”

Tonight the menu was soup and sandwiches.

“What is it this time?”

“Easter Sunday,” was her answer.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Travis and Jennifer got to talking about Gloria’s invitation for Easter.

“Jennifer, we need to talk.”

“What do you want to talk about?” Jennifer asked, looking in his direction.

“I spoke with Mom a couple of days ago. She invited us to supper on Easter Sunday.”

“I like that idea, Travis. Did your mother say what time we should come?”

“No, but all I told her was you and I would talk about it and I’d call her back.”

“I don’t think we have anything going, Travis. Tell your mother we can make it. What about your other brothers and sisters? Are they able to make it?”

“That I don’t know how to answer, Jennifer. I happen to think Zachary and John will be there, but I don’t know about Catherine and Cynthia. I could ask, though.”

“That’s not necessary to ask, Travis.”

“Are you positive?”

“Yes, I am.”

He could tell that Jennifer did mean it.

“I’ll go give Mom a call right now.”

Jennifer said nothing else, and all she did was watch Travis head to the kitchen. He picked up the telephone and began to punch in the number. Jennifer was still sitting on their lumpy couch in the living room. Travis didn’t bother to see Jennifer get off the couch. This was something she and Travis needed to talk about. She’ll mention it when Travis is finished with his telephone call to Gloria.

“Hi, Mom,” she heard Travis say.

After that, Jennifer couldn’t catch the conversation, but it didn’t matter to her.

“Hello, Travis. I see that you talked to Jennifer.”

“We just finished talking about your Easter dinner invitation. We decide that we can come. We don’t have plans, so yes, we’ll look forward to seeing you and everyone else. We were wondering if Cynthia and Catherine are planning to join.”

“Well, John and Jessica are coming. They decided to leave the children with a neighbor so they could have a long visit with me.”

“What about Zachary? What does he have to say about supper?” Travis asked.

“He’s still living with me, you know.”

“I guess I forgot that he is still searching for his own place.”

When he said that, Travis felt an itch coming on his hair, so he scratched his left side. He felt better when he scratched.

“I did ask Catherine and Cynthia about that. You should remember Cynthia lives in North Dakota, so she decided to stay home for the weekend. Catherine also turned me down. She said she agreed with a neighbor she would be over for dinner, and didn’t want to turn the invitation down at the last minute.”

“Sorry about that. Then the rest of us will be able to eat with you and Zachary.”

That put a smile on Gloria’s face when Travis told her this, and Travis could feel his mother smiling on the other end of the line. The two of them ended their phone call. Before he could hang up, a question came to mind. 

“Mom?”

“Yes, Travis?”

“I almost forgot to ask another question. Actually, this is Jennifer’s question, not mine.”

“Ask away,” said Gloria.

“Jennifer was asking what time you would be expecting us.”

Gloria finally noticed that when he mentioned what time would be acceptable.

“How about six? Would that work for both of you?”

“It does. We shall look forward to seeing you.”

“See you then.”

Now the conversation was over. Jennifer was watching Travis entering the living room a second time.

“What did your mother say?” Jennifer asked as she pushed her bangs out of her face.

Travis thought Jennifer could treat herself to a haircut.

Travis repeated Gloria’s answer about everyone else in the family.

“That means we’re good to go,” he told her.

“Did you ask about what time would work?”

“I sure did. She says six o’clock works best. At least we have plenty of time to get ready and get cleaned up.”

“Okay. A friend of mine is having a baby shower afternoon. Easter afternoon. I told her I would be happy to come. She said that you are welcome to come.”

“That was nice of her, Jennifer. I think I’ll pass. I’d like to mow the lawn. It looks like I should do it this weekend and it’s been a while.”

“Don’t remind me about the lawn. You can do it today or tomorrow instead of Sunday.”

“Thanks anyway, Jennifer. I already told myself Sunday would be the best choice.”

“Have it your way.”

That’s when she brought up the conversation about their lumpy couch.

“Now I have something I’d like to ask you.”

“Boy, you’re full of questions this afternoon.”

“I know, Travis.”

“Go ahead. I’m listening.”

Once again an itch came back, but this time it came to his face. Jennifer watched as Travis began to itch when she talked.

“Are you okay, Travis?”

“Yes, I am. What is your question about this time?”

“Furniture,” she answered.

“You asked this question several times before. And I’m giving you the same question again, which is not right now.”

“To me it looks like now is the best time. It’s about to fall apart. Even though you keep giving me the same answer, I think Saturday would be the best time to look and see what they have that’s available.”

This time Travis saw Jennifer had a point.

“I do see what you’re saying about the lumpy couches, honey, but we can’t do it this weekend because you want to attend that baby shower Easter day. The furniture store might even be closed. Have you thought of that one?”

“No, I haven’t.”

Travis was correct when he said the furniture store would be closed Saturday and Sunday.

“All right, you win.”

“Even though we might not order a new set of couches right away, we’re only going to check them out. Once we make a right decision, then we will see what we want.”

“You said that several times before.”

“At least you probably noticed we are arguing about a small thing like this.”

“I don’t see it as an argument, Travis. I was only asking a question, not looking for an argument.”

To him, it looked like an argument, and this time he didn’t want it to happen, but somehow it was.

“Arguing about new furniture is a stupid topic,” he told her.

“I know it is. Sometimes you have to argue with your spouse.”

What Jennifer had just told him was true, so he kept his mouth shut. After that, they stopped the argument before it was carried too far, and neither of them didn’t want to see that happen this time.


	3. Chapter 3

Travis and Jennifer met John and Jessica at Gloria’s. John and Jessica were unlocking the car doors before walking up the steps when Jennifer and Travis drove up. Gloria was already in the living room with a TV show on. She looked out of the window and saw her sons had just arrived. That’s when Gloria opened the front door. When they all walked in, they noticed Gloria was already making dinner.

Once Gloria slammed the door, John said, “Is that dinner? It smells like fried chicken.”

“That’s because it is,” Travis said and gave John a pinch on his right arm.

“That wasn’t very nice!” John exclaimed.

“That’s enough,” Gloria said.

John and Travis didn’t want to argue, so they stopped immediately.

“Don’t act like children,” Zachary told his brothers when he came down the stairs.

He’d just finished blow – drying his hair, so he looked nice and fresh for supper.

“You look nice, Zachary.”

“Thank you, Jennifer.”

Zachary always liked hearing that from other people, and that included his family.

“Would you like me to help with the rest of our supper?” Zachary asked.

“That’s not necessary. You do plenty of work around here, so you deserve a night off.”

“Are you sure, Mom?”

“Of course,” was her answer.

That’s when everyone found a place to sit.

The TV show today was NCIS. Nobody was paying any attention to it, so Jessica reached for the remote and hit the OFF button.

“Mom, the TV’s off! Hope you don’t mind!” Travis called from the living room.

“That’s all right! I’ll call you when it’s time for dinner!” Gloria called back.

“You sure do have a great mother, guys.”

That was Jessica who spoke this time.

“I’ve been hearing that a lot recently,” John replied.

After he said that, John got up from the couch.

“Would anyone like anything to drink?”

“Water for me,” Jennifer answered.

“How about everyone else? Water?”

Everyone nodded, telling John water sounded fine to them. Then John entered the kitchen. He watched Gloria cut up some beets. He saw they were having mixed vegetables as well.

“Hi, Mom. I’m only here to get drinks for everyone else.”

“That’s fine, John. You don’t need to tell me,” Gloria told him as he opened the cupboard and pulled out a few glasses.

“Would you like anything to drink also, Mom?” John asked.

“No, thank you,” Gloria answered.

“Okay.”

That’s when he carried the first two glasses into the living room.

“Here comes John,” Zachary said.

The others didn’t bother to say anything, and Zachary didn’t expect them to.

“Want me to help with the rest, John?”

“Thank you, but I can handle it.”

Again John entered to carry the rest of the glasses. He didn’t bother saying anything to his mother this time. Gloria was busy stirring the mixed vegetables when John disappeared. Asking what this time dinner would be ready wasn’t necessary, John told himself.

When he finished putting the glasses down on the coffee table, John joined Zachary on the couch a second time.

“What did you do today?” John asked.

Everyone gave him the same answer, which was nothing much. Sunday is normally a day of rest, but Gloria didn’t visit churches in town, so that tells you she doesn’t believe in Jesus.

About twenty or so minutes later, everyone joined Gloria in the dining room. Gloria usually eats in the dining room with her family only on holidays such as Easter. When everyone passed the food around the table, they began to eat in silence. Now that Zachary, John, and Travis are older, they know better than to chew with your mouth full.

“What’s for dessert tonight, Mom?” Travis asked.

“We are having strawberry cheesecake,” answered Gloria.

“Yum.”

Everyone did their best to eat everything so there wouldn’t be any leftovers, but there was some left for one meal. Zachary once again offered to help, and Gloria turned him down.

“Want me to be in charge of dessert this time?”

“You are pretty good at helping other people, but I’ve got it.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.”

Nobody stared a conversation, so they felt there wasn’t anything else to share. Travis looked at the grandfather clock on the wall. It said to him it was only five – forty. 

“What time is it, Zachary?”

“Five – forty,” Zachary answered.

There was more silence. Everyone was still quiet when Gloria entered the table with the cheesecake.

“Looks wonderful,” Jennifer complimented Gloria.

“It does, Jennifer. We haven’t even tried it yet,” Travis told his wife.

That’s when Gloria put a knife on the plate. Again everyone were helping themselves. As he waited his turn, Zachary reached for his glass and gulped a couple of times. He was running low on water, so Zachary stood up.

“Out of water?”

“Just about, John.”

At least this gave him something to do while waiting for the cheesecake to come his way.

Once he shut the faucet off, Zachary rejoined the rest of his family at the dining room table.

“Everyone’s quiet today,” Gloria replied.

“There’s nothing to say, Mom.”

This has happened a few times, which isn’t often, but somehow tonight was one of them. There was still plenty of cake left for everyone to take home, so that’s what Gloria did.

“I’ll save the rest of the cake for whoever wants to take it home.”

John looked at Jessica.

“What do you think, Jess?”

“We’ll take it, Gloria.”

“At least somebody was interested.”

Gloria was happy to hear that so the cake wouldn’t go to waste, and she always hated that.

“What are you doing tonight, John?” Travis asked.

“When Mom is finished putting the cake in a plastic bag, Jess and I need to return home, but first we have to pick up the kiddos.”

“I think John has a very good idea. What do you think, Jenn?”

“I agree.”

That’s when everyone stood up to get ready to leave when Gloria returned with the cheesecake.

“Mom, we’re all leaving. Hope that’s okay with you.”

“That’s fine, Travis. I enjoyed the time with you all.”

“So did we,” Jessica replied, taking the plastic bag from Gloria.

Before everyone walked out, Gloria gave them a hug and walked them outside.

“Be careful,” she told them.

She and Zachary watched them drive away.

“Thank you for a nice evening, Mom. I enjoyed it.”

“I’m glad you did,” she said as she opened the front door and they walked in.

**Author's Note:**

> Deanna is only in the story for a telephone conversation, but I'm not sure if she will come in later or not. Thanks for stopping by.


End file.
